Meyer Sound News : Legendary New York Club Reborn as (Le) Poisson Rouge, Debuts with Meyer Sound Surround System

Legendary New York Club Reborn as (Le) Poisson Rouge, Debuts with Meyer Sound Surround System

"Virtually every artist who's appeared on stage here, from Rickie Lee Jones to Simone Dinnerstein, Matmos, and Mos Def has remarked about the quality of the sound. They love playing here, and they love the vibe. Audiences have been equally enthusiastic. It's also another sign that we made the right choice in going with WSDG, Masque Sound, and the Meyer gear."

- Justin Kantor
Co-owner, (Le) Poisson Rouge

Art D'Lugoff's Village Gate has been an intrinsic part of the Greenwich Village scene since the 1950s, its stage hosting a veritable Who's Who of legendary musicians and entertainers including Bob Dylan, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, Aretha Franklin, and Woody Allen. Now reborn as (Le) Poisson Rouge, the completely redesigned cabaret boasts a flexible stage setup and a multichannel surround system from Meyer Sound and actively hosts events that range from jazz, blues and classical presentations to indie performance art and movie screenings.

The club was designed by renowned architectural firm Walters-Storyk Design Group (WSDG). Principals John Storyk and Beth Walters created an original staging design featuring a fixed corner stage in addition to a modular center stage that offers flexible configuration options to the venue, including standing, seated, in-the-round, and others.

"(Le) Poisson Rouge is really multiple clubs, and it requires multiple speaker configurations," says WSDG associate David Kotch, who teamed with Paul Klimson, audio specialist of East Rutherford, N.J.-based Masque Sound, to create the system design.

The self-powered Meyer Sound system features a main array of 11 M'elodie line array loudspeakers positioned over the stage, along with a ring of five additional M'elodie loudspeakers, eight M1D line array loudspeakers, and numerous UPJ-1P VariO and self-powered MM-4XP miniature loudspeakers, all strategically hung on a custom I-beam rack system. Low end is handled by an assortment of 700-HP and 600-HP subwoofers.

Kotch reports that Meyer Sound's Galileo loudspeaker management system plays a key role in providing the system flexibility for (Le) Poisson Rouge. It allows the FOH position to switch from a left-right-center sub delay format for main stage performances to various traditional and surround modes for other shows, offering several system configuration options at the touch of a switch.

"Meyer Sound has developed an amazingly comprehensive line of loudspeakers and speaker management technology, which enabled us to meet every one of the club's sound distribution needs," says Kotch.

Following a series of soft opening performances, co-owner Justin Kantor reports that reactions have been overwhelmingly positive. "Virtually every artist who's appeared on stage here, from Rickie Lee Jones to Simone Dinnerstein, Matmos, and Mos Def has remarked about the quality of the sound. They love playing here, and they love the vibe. Audiences have been equally enthusiastic. It's also another sign that we made the right choice in going with WSDG, Masque Sound, and the Meyer gear."

November, 2008